Billie Joes Voice change

[Schindi_25]

You may have noticed That Billie Joes Voice Hand gone higher since 2012 or 13. Has this Happened because of hie Drug Problems a few years ago?

And do you think it Gets better Now? (Back to the Voice Sound of awesome as fuck Tour for example) 

[Lenny]

I think it’s a combination of aging and a change of vocal technique. 

From what I have researched and have seen (various sources) the voice does not reach its peak sound till about the mid 30s. Seems to align with what we have seen from Billie.

I know in the 50’s it can be difficult because of the effects of aging. My dad was a singer and would tell me a lot about the new challenges he was facing as a singer in that age group.  I think Billie started to face this around the Rev Rad era imo. He also smoked for many years and I know he suffers with some complications from that as well.

 

[Ryan]

He has changed his vocal placement in order to accommodate the stresses of touring/aging. It's really not a big deal, and an absolute necessity if he wants to maintain his voice and be able to continue performing for years to come. Look at the amount of old rock stars (Billie's age and older) that literally cannot sing their music anymore. Some of them can't even sing when they lower the key. We should all be happy that Billie is taking measures (and obviously being VERY intentional about his choices) that will help preserve his voice and allow them to keep making music and performing live. 

[dudley dawson]

I do miss the days of Billie singing with an unintelligible British accent. But I have no issue with how he’s changed it up.

[Slave To The Network]

I have been thinking about this a lot lately too. I listen to 21CB era stuff, especially those covers they did of The Who, Bob Dylan, Social Distortion, etc. and I'm just blown away by his talent as a singer. I don't know a lot about singing and how to preserve the capacity to do it, but if Billie is doing the right things for that, I support him. I have been really missing his lower register, though. Maybe he'll still do that for songs that really need it, but sparingly. Sometimes he'll sing a song and it makes me go "Okay, there's the old voice. I'm glad he still has it!" and then I miss it when he goes back to singing higher.

[Flashback]

I think already between American Idiot and Working Class Hero (2004-2007) we hear quite a difference in Billie's voice

[jengd]

I don’t know much about singing but I do know the voice is a tool that can be used in lots of ways and affected by many things.  @Slave To The Network, that’s funny, I was just listening to 21CB and those covers are so good.  One of the new tracks is supposed to be Billie at his most heavy metal so if that’s true, that could be really interesting.  I support him doing whatever he needs to preserve it but I do wonder if he worked to make his voice more masculine/deeper/rougher when he was younger to fit the scene.

[Insomniac90]

I also loved his trilogy voice performance in 2013. But at the beginning during the FOAM he sounded different comparing to 2021/2022. I mean its still listenable. For me its ok as long as he still can do it.

[Warszawa]

Listen to live performances from 2010. His voice was so powerful, clean and mature. In 2013 his voice started softening. In 2017 his voice was still powerful. In 2021-2023 his voice was at its weakest point. Some songs like 21 guns was unbearable to listen to. So far he is been doing good in this new era. Aging is taking its toll of course but Billie ie still holding up and still sounds great during live performances. 

[stories and songs]

8 hours ago, Slave To The Network said:

I have been thinking about this a lot lately too. I listen to 21CB era stuff, especially those covers they did of The Who, Bob Dylan, Social Distortion, etc. and I'm just blown away by his talent as a singer. I don't know a lot about singing and how to preserve the capacity to do it, but if Billie is doing the right things for that, I support him. I have been really missing his lower register, though. Maybe he'll still do that for songs that really need it, but sparingly. Sometimes he'll sing a song and it makes me go "Okay, there's the old voice. I'm glad he still has it!" and then I miss it when he goes back to singing higher.

I’ve noticed a lot of male singers’ voices tend to thin out as they age and they lose some of their lower register. It seems like Billie needs to growl a bit more in order to sing deeper these days. I’m a big Chris Cornell fan and while his voice isn’t really comparable to Billie’s, he also lost a lot of the depth in his voice as he got older, as just one example.

Billie is seriously such a talented singer, though. My mom still cries talking about how impressive he was performing as St. Jimmy, lol, because he really held his own with all the classically trained Broadway singers!

[pcj]

4 hours ago, Warszawa said:

Listen to live performances from 2010. His voice was so powerful, clean and mature. In 2013 his voice started softening. In 2017 his voice was still powerful. In 2021-2023 his voice was at its weakest point. Some songs like 21 guns was unbearable to listen to. So far he is been doing good in this new era. Aging is taking its toll of course but Billie ie still holding up and still sounds great during live performances. 

Yes. I've been really impressed and excited for the tour next year, with vintage live performances over last few weeks. imho Billie Joe's voice is amazing and handles those high notes brilliantly. Especially the bridge in TAMIKM. You've still got it Billie Joe ❤️

"People on the street

Unemployed and obsolete

Did you ever learn to read the ransom note?"

Just past 1 minute in this example >

 

 

[Warszawa]

1 hour ago, pcj said:

Yes. I've been really impressed and excited for the tour next year, with vintage live performances over last few weeks. imho Billie Joe's voice is amazing and handles those high notes brilliantly. Especially the bridge in TAMIKM. You've still got it Billie Joe ❤️

"People on the street

Unemployed and obsolete

Did you ever learn to read the ransom note?"

Just past 1 minute in this example >

 

 

This part blew me away how he is still able to bend those notes however in amazon and grey half time show he sings weirdly without much depths to it. I think Green day truly shines in club shows right now

[stories and songs]

@Warszawa Those two televised examples may have sounded off for different reasons, though. The mix on the Amazon show was just BAD. It was fixed after the fact a little bit, but still sounds weird to me. And for the Grey Cup, while I thought they sounded much better and true to form, it can’t be easy singing in 30something degree weather (especially because I think Billie was one of the people who got sick in London and was recovering from that, too). 

I’m not saying that as an excuse, but I do think those factors all played a role in why they’ve sounded better in club shows recently.

[Ryan]

11 minutes ago, stories and songs said:

@Warszawa Those two televised examples may have sounded off for different reasons, though. The mix on the Amazon show was just BAD. It was fixed after the fact a little bit, but still sounds weird to me. And for the Grey Cup, while I thought they sounded much better and true to form, it can’t be easy singing in 30something degree weather (especially because I think Billie was one of the people who got sick in London and was recovering from that, too). 

I’m not saying that as an excuse, but I do think those factors all played a role in why they’ve sounded better in club shows recently.

Post-COVID combined with that cold ass weather is absolutely an excuse for how that sounded. Singing in the cold is fucking difficult. Can't even imagine doing it post COVID

[jengd]

40 minutes ago, Ryan said:

Post-COVID combined with that cold ass weather is absolutely an excuse for how that sounded. Singing in the cold is fucking difficult. Can't even imagine doing it post COVID

I don’t think we know what they had, all the normal colds etc have not gone away with the arrival of Covid, but yes, completely agree.  I saw them last summer and he sounded great.

[Insomniac90]

As far as I remember he sounded good during BOBD at the grey cup.

We will see in the next months. He sounded a bit weak during the first FOAM performances but last year he did pretty good.

[Slave To The Network]

12 hours ago, stories and songs said:

Billie is seriously such a talented singer, though. My mom still cries talking about how impressive he was performing as St. Jimmy, lol, because he really held his own with all the classically trained Broadway singers!

Oh I know! He's just amazing! I got to witness that first hand. Still one of the greatest nights of my life. 

[JardyOfSuburbia]

Larry Livermore actually mentioned this in something he wrote this summer after seeing them perform.

"Interview done, I walked outside and immediately ran into Billie Joe, who seemed a lot more ebullient and upbeat than he had the previous night. We talked about a host of things, but the one thing I especially wanted to tell him was that I’d just listened to a recording of him singing at the show a couple nights previous.

“Your voice sounded richer and warmer than it ever has before,” I said. “It reminded me of Sinatra when he was coming into his prime.” It might sound like a strange thing to say to a world-renowned punk rock singer, especially one who’s been singing very successfully for most of his life, but I also knew that Billie had sung Sinatra songs with his dad long before he ever set foot in a punk rock venue, and was pretty sure he’d get what I meant."

 

Full post: https://larrylivermore.com/?p=4887&fbclid=IwAR1tPiQ8m6rb_Ij6iw-klLXNyomBBaxx2Xb9MxqYkhbtmTK3f6KzknHitDg

[Saviour]

On 11/27/2023 at 2:57 AM, dudley dawson said:

I do miss the days of Billie singing with an unintelligible British accent. But I have no issue with how he’s changed it up.

I've heard this before, and as a Bri'ish person I can't say I've ever heard an accent. He's always sounded very obviously American to me. 

On the main point though, his voice does sound "thinner," somehow. Maybe more head voice than chest voice. 

I do think a big part of it is him fighting against the natural effects of aging. He keeps singing songs in higher registers, and a lot of the tonal qualities of the voice are due to him straining to reach the high notes more than he used to. 

What's the highest note he's sung without swapping to falsetto? The chorus of Still Breathing? I'm not sure he'd be able to reach that nowadays. 

But that's the way it is. Not a bad thing... He just has to adapt his technique, and perhaps rely on the tech a bit more. (yes, they definitely use an autotune software - it's standard)

Edited November 28, 2023 by Saviour

[Schindi_25]

On 11/27/2023 at 1:15 PM, Warszawa said:

Listen to live performances from 2010. His voice was so powerful, clean and mature. In 2013 his voice started softening. In 2017 his voice was still powerful. In 2021-2023 his voice was at its weakest point. Some songs like 21 guns was unbearable to listen to. So far he is been doing good in this new era. Aging is taking its toll of course but Billie ie still holding up and still sounds great during live performances. 

Actually I Miss the Little voicecrack at the beginning of She nowadays

[nopride84]

Probably caused damage from that 2001 show in Japan where he had no voice but still tried to sing and  yell. I had bad strep throat one time  and had no voice but still tried to talk n shit and it damaged my vocal chordsbut did the opposite where I can't get high and Billie can't get low lol

[Ryan]

33 minutes ago, Saviour said:

What's the highest note he's sung without swapping to falsetto? The chorus of Still Breathing? I'm not sure he'd be able to reach that nowadays. 

I think that Static Age is at or near the top of that list (also looking at the fact that I believe he did some of those harmonies...which are fucking high at the end). 

 

Side note: I'd die a happy man if they added Static Age into their setlist again

[ekim]

On 11/26/2023 at 8:57 PM, dudley dawson said:

I do miss the days of Billie singing with an unintelligible British accent. But I have no issue with how he’s changed it up.

I think he's become a better singer I couldn't see younger billie pulling off the vocals for outlaws somewhere now the forgotten etc 

[stories and songs]

7 hours ago, JardyOfSuburbia said:

Larry Livermore actually mentioned this in something he wrote this summer after seeing them perform.

"Interview done, I walked outside and immediately ran into Billie Joe, who seemed a lot more ebullient and upbeat than he had the previous night. We talked about a host of things, but the one thing I especially wanted to tell him was that I’d just listened to a recording of him singing at the show a couple nights previous.

“Your voice sounded richer and warmer than it ever has before,” I said. “It reminded me of Sinatra when he was coming into his prime.” It might sound like a strange thing to say to a world-renowned punk rock singer, especially one who’s been singing very successfully for most of his life, but I also knew that Billie had sung Sinatra songs with his dad long before he ever set foot in a punk rock venue, and was pretty sure he’d get what I meant."

 

Full post: https://larrylivermore.com/?p=4887&fbclid=IwAR1tPiQ8m6rb_Ij6iw-klLXNyomBBaxx2Xb9MxqYkhbtmTK3f6KzknHitDg

Thank you for sharing this, what a lovely read. He also mentions later in the article that he thought Billie’s falsetto on 21 Guns was great at the show he saw.

[pacejunkie punk]

I think one of the best ways to hear the maturity and improvement in Billie’s voice over the years is to listen to the many iterations of When It’s Time from 1992, 1994, 1998, 2004 and finally 2010.